Seven Research and Development Intern Partnerships Tuesday were approved for funding at a total of $320,780 by the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST). Awards approved this week support undergraduate student internships in biotechnology, cyber security, climate, energy and aerospace. Awards are for up to two-year internships.

The program helps Oklahoma small businesses locate hard-to-find technology-trained employees. OCAST pays one-half the cost for an undergraduate intern to work in a research and development setting.
OCAST’s program is designed to assist technology-based job creation. It combines university faculty oversight with financial support and business mentoring from the private sector. Some of the college students who participate in the program eventually become employees of the businesses that sponsor them.

Most recent program awards follow:Biotechnology
Oklahoma City – Tom Jobe of SensiQ Technologies Inc. of Oklahoma City will oversee three interns who will work in a research project involving development of a new, label-free biosensor platform for biomolecular interaction analysis. The findings are expected to have specific applications in areas of drug discovery and drug screening. The focus will be in three disciplines: biochemistry, biomedical engineering and electrical/software engineering. Title: Label-free Platform for Drug Discovery Research and Development. Total funding: $59,400

Oklahoma City – Professor Fabiola Janiak-Spens will work with five interns on various projects with multiple Oklahoma firms. Five biology companies and one university research laboratory in central Oklahoma are partners in the project. At Analytical Research Laboratories, the intern will participate in evaluating currently available pharmaceutical products with regard to purity and stability. Interns working at DNA Solutions will help develop genetic testing systems for white-tailed deer and cattle. At Great Plains Microbiology, interns will research high-throughput screening methods for determining food safety. SolidTech Animal Health will work with interns challenged to help in research efforts of immuno therapeutics for preventing cattle diseases. Interns at Cytovance will contribute to the transfer of a biopharmaceutical manufacturing process from Cytovance’s lab into a full-scale manufacturing facility. Title: Internships for Biotechnology Program Students. Total funding: $27,360

Cyber Security
Tulsa – Jerald Dawkins of True Digital Security of Tulsa will direct two interns in a project designed to manage the “Big Data Problem.” The challenge involves large volumes of complex data that, due to its complexity, overwhelms the existing ability to manage the data. The application targets advanced persistent threats and the need to develop new framework that will make the cyber security issue manageable. Title: Critical Infrastructure Cyber Security Information Sharing. Total funding: $60,000

Climate
Tulsa – Surendra Singh of the University of Tulsa will direct two students at MIRATECH. The Tulsa firm is working on development and validation of rapid aging and deactivation test cycles for catalyst concept screening, enhancement of control systems using advanced sensors and emission solutions for bi-fuel engine retrofit kits. Title: Design and Development of Emission Solutions. Total funding: $60,000

Tulsa – Ranji Vaidyanathan of Oklahoma State University will direct two interns who will work with CleanNG LLC in developing non-cylindrical composite vessels so that storage tanks can replace existing gas tanks using software specifically designed for such parts. The research will have an impact on improving compressed natural gas tanks for vehicles. Title: RDIP: Interns for Adsorbed Natural Gas Composite Tanks. Total funding: $31,689

Aerospace
Tulsa – Surendra Singh of the University of Tulsa will oversee two students at Spirit Aviation where they will review acquisition costs of aircraft components and develop engineering solutions. Such solutions will involve the use of alternate materials, new manufacturing processes and innovative design changes. Both students in concert with Spirit Aviation research mentors will be involved in engineering design, specifications, development, testing and manufacturing phases. Title: Design and Development of Aircraft Components. Total funding: $60,000
###